Cate Brown likes to believe exterior the box about trend. As an alternative of scouring flea markets, thrift stores and consignment stores for sweet outfits, the designer queries for couture-high quality clothes that she can change into a person-of-a-type toss pillows. “I’m motivated by previous-earth glamour and amazing fashion materials of days absent by,” she tells Business of House. “I’m on a mission to honor these styles by offering them a next lifestyle.”
Cate Brown with the 01 pillow by Jody Morlock for Cate Brown StudioCourtesy of Cate Brown Studio
Just after 15 years operating as an interior designer all through New York and Vancouver, Brown discovered an alarming craze. “The vogue and layout industries generate an unbelievable amount of textile waste,” she claims. “I understood I wanted to find a imaginative way to be a lot more sustainable about my models.”
For Brown, this intended turning to her very own wardrobe for inspiration. As an alternative of hanging on to pieces that she cherished but hadn’t worn in years, she made a decision to change some of her most treasured clothing merchandise into bespoke decorative pillows for her individual property. “I love generating really personalized spaces, and very little is additional personalised than a decor accent crafted from a beloved garment,” she suggests.
In 2019, she introduced her namesake studio with Re-Find, a collection of 24 hand-made toss pillows composed of utilized textiles sourced from her possess closet and several classic shops. “It was a new, eco-mindful principle that I required to share with other designers and vendors,” she says.
Brown repurposes vintage designer wares into ornamental pillowsCourtesy of Cate Brown Studio
Right now, her studio delivers extra than 700 exclusive cushions crafted from legendary ensembles ranging from a long time-aged Chanel boucle jackets to Jeremy Scott for Longchamp skirts and common plaid Burberry trench coats. “London and New York classic stores are a treasure trove of these styles of clothes, as are some of the on the net luxury classic sellers like The Luxurious Closet and The RealReal,” she states.
The Cherry O 01 pillow (still left) and Gimme a Beet 01 pillow by Cate Brown StudioCourtesy of Cate Brown Studio
All of Brown’s types begin as carefully worn clothes that she deconstructs and fashions into pillows. “I usually blend in dead-stock textiles for backers or leathers from vintage jackets,” she states. “It’s a great deal like putting an outfit together.”
When developing a piece, Brown likes to permit the garb’s couture-high quality details—such as diligently utilized bows, buttons and pockets—do the chatting. “I always pay homage to the heritage of the garment,” she suggests. “I like imagining the spots it has been in the past, as properly as the new life it will lead.”
In addition to an array of upcycled designer finds, Brown also collaborates with common artists on recycled cushions for her charitable Assisting Hearts campaign. The line options 20 layouts by modern day painters including Tina Psoinos, Jody Morlock and Julia Rivera, with all proceeds heading right to New York Cares, the greatest volunteer network in the metropolis. “I have really enjoyed observing these artists place their personal contact on vintage garment materials and switch them into unbelievable functions of artwork,” claims Brown.
On the lookout ahead, she has ideas to launch a selection of baggage and have-on cases this spring, and is at the moment hard at get the job done on prototypes for an out of doors-friendly line of pillows, throws and poufs. “I hope to expand my income arrive at and inspire other homewares corporations to uncover techniques to repurpose and reuse methods that are by now all around us,” states Brown. “This way, we can make a collective hard work to cut down textile waste.”
If you want to discover a lot more about Cate Brown, take a look at her website or abide by her on Instagram.
